The topic of public cruising in Georgia Parks has been a topic of heated discussion since the fatal stabbing of Patrick Boland in the early hours of the morning on May 28th in Atlanta's Piedmont Park. The Atlanta Police Department believes Boland, who was gay, was in the park likely seeking sex or possibly there to meet a friend, according to the lead detective on the case.

"Anonymous sex and cruising for sex has been a part of the gay male culture for centuries and will be for more centuries to come. It may not be cute to admit, but it is what it is", notes Atlanta gay activist Jon Ortiz in a guest post featured on loldarian.com on public cruising in June.

It seems cruising is not restricted to Atlanta area parks and is occurring on the outskirts of the city in the suburb of Marietta, Georgia and has been for over twenty years. But a recent column printed in the Marietta Daily Journal by columnist Dick Yarbrough proposes an inhumane and downright homophobic solution to curbing the problem of public sex.

"Train dogs to bite gay lovers and chase them off to Atlanta where they belong". I sh** you not!

Burruss Nature Park on South Cobb Drive and Wildwood Park on Barclay Circle: It seems there have been numerous incidents over the years of men having sex with other men in these parks. If any of the participants are reading this (Somehow, I don't think I am "must-read" in the gay community), you could be in serious trouble.

With a little instruction, dogs could be taught to severely dislike the gay lovers in Burruss and Wildwood and bite them in the fanny and do what City Council should have done years ago - chase them off to Atlanta where they belong.

Who in their right mind would write such garbage and actually expect people to take his proposed solution seriously? Better yet, what kind of editor would allow such garbage to make it into print? But wait...this is Georgia we're talking about.

In the age of online hookups and countless social events where gay and bisexual men have the opportunity to meet potential sex partners it baffles me that some of us continue to risk our health, freedom, and ultimately our lives by participating in risky public sex. What's the draw? Is it just the rush of having public sex with the potential of being caught, a fetish, or a much more serious problem such as sexual addiction?

Lets not judge and assume that someone doing the sex parties, parks, etc. have self esteem issues. That's not the case at all for a good number of them. For some it can be related to self esteem issues but for most, they are just horny as fuck and act out however they wish whether you like it or not.

This should be a reason to legalize bathhouses, etc to prevent a murder like this. Again whether you like it or not, they are safe havens for those who want sex in that manner!

Now its cool that you personally don't do it, but lets not sit here and act high and mighty cuz someone else does it and you don't agree with it. I'm pretty sure we all know the risks of hookups whether you meet them at a house party or a sex party or at the park. It don't matter where it is.

@Raw Daddy.Did the post strike a nerve? "That's not the case for a good number of them".You mean its not the case for you? bcoz i don't know how u would know why others do it.Just like the other guys who said its a self esteem issue, they don't know that for sure as well.

I dont think alot of people know about it. One of my associates told me about it and I was shocked. Not totally surprised, but shocked nonetheless. Have to be careful people are crazy out here. Of course the dude who mentioned training dogs is a homophobic idiot. Please pay him not mind.

Some people (and let's not kid ourselves, straight folks have sex in public parks too) do it because they have no place to go. They can't go home, because a spouse or lover is there, they don't want the headache of trying to find a "no tell motel". They just want to fuck, right then and there, because the opportunity has presented itself.

I think people cruise for a variety of reaons, the main ones being (a) they like the taboo nature of public sex and (b) feeling like they have no other options. That may be related to (c) lack of self esteem or being closeted.

The real issue here is not cruising the parks, its homophobia. Yes, cruising for anonymous sex in public parks may be very dangerous but what's indicative of greater danger for ALL gays is the fact that a major publication allowed one of it's writers to suggest training dogs to sniff out and attack non-violent gay adults and chase them back to Atlanta where they belong. They don't just want us in their parks, they don't want us around period!!

I'm a gay black male and I've had public sex a time or 2...just to add a little adventure to my life. However, it's much more than that for some dudes. Anonymous sex is the only outlet for some gays. If it was fully accepted to be gay in this ass-backwards society, perhaps gays would be more inclined to meet the old-fashioned way like str8 folks do...in sleazy bars! Seriously, I'm happily out of the closet, but a lot of gay guys are not...and they don't believe they can be. Of course the urges don't go away, so they find a quiet place to fulfill them. It's not rocket science...sexual oppression + hormones = the dl!